Coinbase hit with Sun and Cronje’s $300M token listing
Some large cryptocurrency exchanges charge up to hundreds of millions of dollars for new token listings.
According to Tron founder Justin Sun, Coinbase is asking for a total fee of $330 million to list Tron (TRX). Sun posted on X on November 4 that while Binance did not request any payment, Coinbase requested 500 million TRX tokens (worth around $80 million) and a $250 million Bitcoin deposit in Coinbase Custody.
Coinbase list payment charges. Source: Justin Sun
While Sun's comments lack evidence, they come as a surprising development when Coinbase announced that it will not pay any fees to list new cryptocurrencies.
“Asset listings on Coinbase are free,” Coinbase founder and CEO Brian Armstrong wrote in a November 2 X post.
Property listings are free. Source: Brian Armstrong
Binance and Coinbase are among the most popular centralized crypto exchanges (CEXs) in the world. Binance is the world's largest crypto exchange, controlling 39.5% of the total crypto trading volume. Coinbase is the world's sixth largest exchange, controlling more than 6.1% market share, according to CoinGecko data.
Cointelegraph has reached out to Coinbase and Binance for comment.
Related: Binance founder CZ sees positive change in crypto regulation around the world
The Phantom token listing is said to have cost up to $303 million – Andre Cronje
Tron founder Sun wasn't the only crypto personality to make claims about the token's listing fees.
Fantom Network founder Andre Cronje also posted that Coinbase has offered various listing fees for Fantom (FTM) ranging from $30 million to $300 million. Cronje responded to Armstrong's post, “Binance charged us $0. Coinbase asked us; $300 million, $50 million, $30 million, and most recently $60 million.
Cronje detailed charge charges. Source: Andre Cronje
André Cronje is one of the most respected founders in decentralized finance. Cronje claims that the Sonic blockchain is the fastest Ethereum virtual machine chain, reaching a “realistic” 720-ms latency in the TestNet environment.
Previously, Cronje founded Yearn.finance and the Keep3r network.
Related: Financial Institutions Seek Bitcoin and ETFs: Blockstream's Adam Back
Will CEX listing fees set the stage for a DEX invasion?
Following Sun and Cronje's initial responses, hundreds of others expressed concern about the sustainability of the current CEXs.
Other exchanges are also demanding tens of millions in listing fees, said Simon Dedich, CEO and partner at Monrock Capital. This could set the stage for an exodus to decentralized exchanges (DEXs), Dedik added in an Oct. 31 X post.
“I think it's inevitable that DEXs will catch on at some point.”
If confirmed, these rumors could indeed set the stage for a growing DEX landscape, responded crypto trader, analyst and entrepreneur Michael van de Pop in an October 31 X post.
“I think DEXes are going to be huge because people are completely fed up with this structure. Exchanges have the power to literally kill your project.”
Last year, DX trading volume “grew exponentially” in March and June, surpassing the $250 billion monthly increase for the first time since December 2021, according to a 0XScope research report shared with Cointelegraph.
As of October 17, the volume of DEX spot trading in relation to CXX was 13.6%, which means that $ 1 billion is traded on centralized exchanges, and $ 136 million is traded on decentralized platforms.
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